Chester's Chicken franchise
2026 filing · April 6, 2026Fewer locations
Chester's Chicken at a glance
A fried chicken counter inside a convenience store, supermarket or other host business, serving Chester's breaded chicken and sides. At the end of 2025 there were 918 Chester's Chicken locations in the US, all franchised.
The business
- Franchisor
- Chesters International, LLC
- The company that sells the franchises
- Franchising since
- 2004
- 22 years of selling franchises
- Franchisor based in
- Birmingham, Alabama
What you pay
- Cost to open
- $28K–$307K
- A Chester's store-in-store restaurant, excluding real estate
- Franchise fee
- $3,500
- Charged as a training fee, the only initial fee
- Royalty
- None; $200 a quarter
- No royalty. Owners buy Chester's proprietary breading and other products through designated distributors and pay a $200 quarterly marketing support fee
- Brand fund
- Yes
- $200 a quarter for marketing material samples; it can rise to $325
- Territory
- None
- No exclusive territory
Where it is
- US locations, 2025
- 918
- Franchised and company-owned
- Franchised
- 918
- Company-owned
- 0
- Change in 1 years
- −163
- Franchised locations, 2023–2025
- States
- 45
- Most in Arkansas, California and Texas
From Chesters International, LLC’s 2026 filing; revenue and net income from its audited financial statements, page 77; SBA status from the SBA Franchise Directory, October 28, 2026.
Franchisor revenue is the company that sells the franchises (royalties, fees and anything else it earns), not what a location makes.
Where it ranks
Chester's Chicken among all franchises with the same figure.
| Figure | Chester's Chicken | Among all franchises |
|---|---|---|
| Cost to open, midpointHalfway between the low and high estimate | $167,000 | Costs less than 74% of franchises |
| Franchise feePaid once, when you sign | $3,500 | Lower than 98% of franchises |
| US locationsFranchised and company-owned | 918 | More than 97% of franchises |
How much a Chester's Chicken franchise costs
Opening a Chester's store-in-store restaurant, excluding real estate costs an estimated $27,500 to $306,500. That covers the franchise fee and everything else needed to open, through the first months of working capital. It is one of the franchises under $30K.
The biggest costs are build-out cost ($0 to $200,000) and equipment, furniture, signage, and fixtures ($12,000 to $55,000). Here is every line of the estimate as filed:
| What it pays for | Range | Low | High |
|---|---|---|---|
| Training Fee | $3,500 | ||
| Insurance | $0 | $10,000 | |
| Build-out Cost | $0 | $200,000 | |
| Equipment, Furniture, Signage, and Fixtures | $12,000 | $55,000 | |
| Initial Inventory | $2,000 | $9,000 | |
| Grand Opening Advertising | $0 | $4,000 | |
| Additional Funds (3 Months) | $10,000 | $25,000 | |
| Total | $27,500 | $306,500 | |
Source: Chesters International, LLC, 2026 filing, page 18
Chester's Chicken franchise fee
The franchise fee is $3,500, charged as a training fee, the only initial fee. You pay it when you sign the franchise agreement.
Source: Chesters International, LLC, 2026 filing, page 15
Royalty and ongoing fees
| Royalty | No royalty. Owners buy Chester's proprietary breading and other products through designated distributors and pay a $200 quarterly marketing support fee. |
|---|---|
| Brand or marketing fund | $200 a quarter for marketing material samples; it can rise to $325. |
| Additional Training or Assistance | Not to exceed $1,000 per day |
The typical franchise royalty is 6% of sales, plus 2% for marketing. See franchise fees and royalties to compare.
Source: Chesters International, LLC, 2026 filing, page 15
Other fees as filed, from page 16. The filing lists every fee, including late fees and audit costs.
Sales and earnings
No figures Chester's Chicken does not share sales or profit figures for its locations. Talking to current and former franchise owners is the usual way to learn what a location earns.
Source: Chesters International, LLC, 2026 filing, page 46
- Estimate Estimated yearly sales per location
- $390K–$690K
Estimated from the sales that 292 comparable franchises file, matched on industry, format, cost to open, fees and size.
SBA loans to Chester's Chicken franchisees
Lenders approved 10 SBA-backed loans for Chester's Chicken franchisees from 2016 to 2026, $17.8M in all: 9 7(a) loans and 1 504 loan. All 5 that have ended were paid in full; none was charged off. The other 5 haven’t ended yet.
A charged-off loan is one written off as uncollectible. See SBA franchise loans for how 7(a) and 504 loans work.
Source: SBA 7(a) and 504 loan data, as of September 30, 2026
How Chester's Chicken compares
Of the 113 chicken franchises on this site, Chester's Chicken is the 2nd cheapest to open and the 7th largest by number of locations.
| Figure | Chester's Chicken | Typical chicken brand | Typical franchise |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost to open, low end | $28K | $407K | $222K |
| Cost to open, high end | $307K | $868K | $477K |
| Franchise fee | $4K | $35K | $40K |
| US locations | 918 | 10 | 21 |
| Closed or left per year | 13.7% | 4.5% | – |
| Change in franchised locations, 1 yrs | −15.1% | +16.7% | – |
| Shares earnings figures | No | 61 of 113 | 2,147 of 3,352 |
Typical is the median across the 113 brands in chicken franchises; typical franchise, across every brand here.
Locations opened and closed
| Year | Franchised | Company-owned | Opened | Closed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 1,076 (−110) | 0 | – | – |
| 2022 | 1,081 (+5) | 0 | – | – |
| 2023 | 1,002 (−79) | 0 | +69 | −148 |
| 2024 | 994 (−8) | 0 | – | – |
| 2025 | 918 (−76) | 0 | – | – |
Closed or left counts terminations, non-renewals, locations bought back by the franchisor and locations that stopped operating.
See which brands grew most in the fastest-growing franchises rankings.
More in the guides: chicken franchise costs, gas station franchises and franchise failure rates.
Over 5 years, from the start of 2021 to the end of 2025, franchised locations went from 1,186 to 918 (−268, −23%). The earlier years come from the brand's 2024 filing.
Source: Chesters International, LLC, 2026 filing, page 47
2021–2022: Chesters International, LLC, 2024 filing, page 38
Where Chester's Chicken locations are
At the end of 2025, Chester's Chicken had franchised locations in 46 states and territories. The most are in Arkansas, California and Texas.
- Arkansas131
- California63
- Texas61
- Missouri51
- Iowa43
- Georgia41
| State | Franchised |
|---|---|
| Arkansas | 131 |
| California | 63 |
| Texas | 61 |
| Missouri | 51 |
| Iowa | 43 |
| Georgia | 41 |
| Washington | 37 |
| Mississippi | 33 |
| Illinois | 32 |
| Michigan | 30 |
All 46 states
Source: Chesters International, LLC, 2026 filing, page 50
Who owns Chester's Chicken?
Chester's Chicken franchises are sold by Chesters International, LLC. Its filing names no parent company.
From Chesters International, LLC’s 2026 filing, page 11.
Lawsuits and bankruptcy
| Lawsuits and regulatory actions | None. The filing says no litigation has to be disclosed. |
|---|---|
| Bankruptcy | None. The filing says no bankruptcy has to be disclosed. |
Franchisors must disclose lawsuits and bankruptcies involving the company, its parents and affiliates, and its executives. Many cases are routine disputes with franchisees over fees or contracts; read the descriptions in the filing and ask current owners about anything that worries you.
Source: Chesters International, LLC, 2026 filing, litigation on page 15, bankruptcy on page 15
Chester's Chicken filings
A franchisor files a new disclosure each year it sells franchises. The figures on this page come from Chesters International, LLC’s 2026 filing, issued April 6, 2026; the earlier ones below are on record with the Minnesota Department of Commerce and fill in older location counts.
| Filing | Issued | Registry | On this page |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 filing | April 6, 2026 | Minnesota | Costs, fees and locations, 2023–2025 |
| 2024 filing | – | Minnesota | Locations, 2021–2022 |
Each link opens the filing as a PDF. See the newest filings across all brands.
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